The Mossad is, by design, a shadowy organization that has pulled off some of the most impressive operations in modern history. Since it takes many chances in all kinds of risky situations, it naturally has its share of failures too.
Perhaps the most impressive of all of it’s activities in recent years has been the remarkable beeper operation against the Hizbullah. It single-handedly decapitated nearly the entire leadership of the Hizbullah, without barely harming anyone else, in one fell swoop. Even more remarkable, it did not kill most of the operatives – it left them labeled as former Hezbollah operatives with facial scars and missing limbs.
They walk and limp around Lebanon as a constant reminder of the Mossad’s power. This is in order to instill fear in potential terrorists in the future. It also means that every time a terrorist uses a phone, they are nervous that they are being listened in on.
These forms of battle sometimes require years and years of planning in order to reach a goal. The shadowy beeper business that was created in Hungary in order to supply the beepers for the Hizbullah could have easily been a waste of tens of millions of dollars if the beeper operation had been spoiled by a suspecting terrorist.